Cartilage Measurement Device and Method of Use

ABSTRACT

Disclosed herein is a device that helps to reduce the potential for inaccuracies and uncertainties associated with allograft cartilage transfer procedures. In one embodiment, the disclosed device generally includes a shaft, a stationary ring attached to the shaft, and a movable ring attached to the shaft and configured to move either toward the stationary ring or away from the stationary ring along the axis of the shaft. In practice, the device may be placed within a recipient cavity and adjusted such that one ring is positioned at the distal surface of the recipient cavity and the other ring is flush with the native cartilage surface of the recipient. The device may be removed from the recipient cavity, a donor graft placed within, and any excess donor graft extending beyond the rings trimmed off. The donor graft may then be removed from the device and inserted within the recipient cavity.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of and claims the benefit of priorityunder 35 U.S.C. § 120 to U.S. application Ser. No. 16/857,763, filed onApr. 24, 2020 and titled “Cartilage Measurement Device and Method ofUse,” which claims the benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e) toU.S. Provisional Application No. 62/838,875, filed on Apr. 25, 2019 andtitled “Cartilage Measurement Device and Method of Use,” the contents ofwhich are incorporated by reference herein in their entirety.

BACKGROUND

As a general matter, surgeons or other medical professionals have aswath of medical devices and other tools that they use to make medicalprocedures, such as surgeries, safe and efficient. To name a few, thesetools include scalpels, reamers, measuring tapes, etc. Some tools,however, are rather rudimentary, which may result in any procedures thatmake use of such tools, prone to human error. As such, new and improvedmedical devices that result in a safer or more efficient procedure, orthat generally reduce the chance for human error during the procedure,are advantageous and desired.

Overview

The present disclosure is directed to a medical device designed for useduring allograft cartilage transfer procedures (and perhaps other typesof medical procedures), and a method for engaging in an allograftcartilage transfer procedure or the like using such a device.

Current allograft cartilage transfer procedures (as well as perhapsother similar procedures) can involve rather rudimentary measuring andmarking steps that may allow for human error during the procedure. Forexample, during a typical allograft cartilage transfer procedure, thesurgeon will remove damaged cartilage from a recipient using a reamingdevice. After this removal, a cavity remains from which the damagedcartilage was removed. The surgeon typically measures the depth of thiscavity using a measuring device. A measuring device is generally anelongated shaft, which can be flexible (like a measuring tape orflexible ruler) or rigid (like a probe), depending on theimplementation. The measuring device generally has measurement markingsdisplayed thereon, akin to a ruler or tape such that the surgeon canobserve the measurement markings. To measure the depth of the cavity,the surgeon typically inserts the probe, ruler, or tape, as the case maybe, into the cavity at multiple positions (e.g., at 12:00, 3:00, 6:00,and 9:00 positions, although other positions are possible), and at eachposition within the cavity the surgeon observes the depth of the cavityat that position as indicated by measurement markings on the measuringdevice. The surgeon then records these depths on paper or otherrecording medium.

Next, the surgeon obtains a graft from a donor, intending for this graftto be inserted into the recipient cavity created as described above.Typically, this graft is longer than necessary, so the surgeon will cutoff any excess graft such that the graft fits flush within the recipientcavity. To do this, the surgeon recalls the recorded depths of therecipient cavity and marks these depths on the graft with a pen or othermarking instrument. For instance, in the case that measurements weretaken at 12:00, 3:00, 6:00, and 9:00 positions within the recipientcavity, the surgeon marks corresponding measurements on the distal endof the graft at corresponding 12:00, 3:00, 6:00, and 9:00 positions. Thesurgeon then connects these points by drawing a line with a pen or othermarking instrument and trims off any portion of the distal end of thegraft that extends beyond this line.

However, these steps are somewhat imprecise and prone to human error.For instance, the surgeon or an assistant may misread the measuringdevice and thus record an inaccurate measurement of the depth at one ormore positions of the recipient cavity. Similarly, the surgeon or anassistant may inaccurately transfer the recorded measurements onto thegraft. Even in cases where the surgeon accurately measures the depths ofthe recipient cavity and accurately transfers these measurements to thegraft, the thickness of the pen marking, which indicates the measureddepths, may contribute to uncertainty and result in an inaccurate trimof the distal end of the graft. Indeed, any one or more of theseinaccuracies may result in a graft that does not appropriately fitwithin the recipient cavity, either because it is too long (as would bethe case if not enough graft was trimmed off), too short (as would bethe case if too much graft was trimmed off), or otherwise does not fitflush within the recipient cavity. These errors prolong the surgicalprocedure as steps may need to be repeated, and thus increase the costand risks associated with the procedure.

To address one or more of these shortcomings, disclosed herein is ameasuring device that helps to reduce the potential for inaccuracies anduncertainties associated with the measuring steps described above. Thedisclosed device generally includes (i) a shaft, (ii) a stationary ringattached to the shaft (where the stationary ring may have a few degreesof rotational freedom in any direction, as described in more detailbelow), and (iii) a movable ring attached to the shaft and configured tomove either toward the stationary ring or away from the stationary ringalong the axis of the shaft. Such a device may be used during allograftcartilage transfer procedures by, for instance, placing the devicewithin the recipient cavity, adjusting the movable ring such that onering is positioned at the distal surface of the recipient cavity and theother ring is flush with the native cartilage surface of the recipient.The movable ring may then be locked into place and the device may beremoved from the recipient cavity. A donor graft may then be placed inthe device, specifically within the stationary ring and the movablering, and any distal portion of the donor graft that extends beyond therings may be trimmed off while the graft is positioned within thedevice. The donor graft may then be removed from the device and insertedwithin the recipient cavity. Accordingly, using the device in this waymay enable the surgeon to avoid having to separately measure multipledepths of the recipient cavity and transfer those measurements onto thegraft itself, and thus may help reduce the risk of human errorcontributing to an inaccurate measurement and/or trim. Variousembodiments and configurations of the disclosed device are describedfurther herein.

Accordingly, in one aspect, disclosed herein is a device for use duringa graft procedure, where the device comprises a shaft having a distalportion and a proximal portion, a proximal ring coupled to a proximalportion of the shaft, and a distal ring coupled to a distal portion ofthe shaft, wherein a given one of the proximal ring and the distal ringis movably coupled to the shaft and configured to move up and down alongthe axis of the shaft.

In another respect, disclosed herein a method for engaging in a graftprocedure. In particular, the method may include positioning a devicewithin a recipient cavity such that a distal ring of the device contactsa bottom surface of the cavity and a top surface of a proximal portionof the device is flush with a native surface surrounding the recipientcavity, actuating a locking mechanism that causes one of the proximalring and the distal ring to be temporarily fixed in place in relation tothe shaft, placing a donor graft within the device, and trimming anexcess portion of the donor graft that extends beyond one of theproximal ring and the distal ring of the device.

One of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate these as well asnumerous other aspects in reading the following disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of an example device in accordance with oneexample embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a top view of an example device in accordance with one exampleembodiment.

FIG. 3 is a side view of an example device in accordance with oneexample embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a side view of an example device in an example open positionin accordance with one example embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a rear view of an example device in accordance with oneexample embodiment.

FIG. 6. depicts a flow diagram showing some example steps that may beincluded in a procedure utilizing an example embodiment of the discloseddevice.

FIG. 7 depicts an example cavity in recipient cartilage with which anexample embodiment of the disclosed device may be used.

FIG. 8 depicts an example cross-section of a cavity in recipientcartilage with which an example embodiment of the disclosed device maybe used.

FIG. 9 depicts an example embodiment of the disclosed device thatcontains an example portion of a donor graft.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As mentioned, disclosed herein is a measuring device that helps toreduce the potential for inaccuracies and uncertainties associated withthe measuring steps described above. The disclosed device generallyincludes (i) a shaft, (ii) a stationary ring attached to the shaft, and(iii) a movable ring attached to the shaft and configured to move eithertoward the stationary ring or away from the stationary ring along theaxis of the shaft. Such a device may be used during allograft cartilagetransfer procedures by, for instance, placing the device within therecipient cavity, adjusting the movable ring such that one ring ispositioned at the distal surface of the recipient cavity and the otherring is flush with the native cartilage surface of the recipient. Themovable ring may then be locked into place and the device may be removedfrom the recipient cavity. A donor graft may then be placed in thedevice, specifically within the stationary ring and the movable ring,and any distal portion of the donor graft that extends beyond the ringsmay be trimmed off while the graft is positioned within the device. Thedonor graft may then be removed from the device and inserted within therecipient cavity. Accordingly, using the device in this way may enablethe surgeon to avoid having to separately measure multiple depths of therecipient cavity and transfer those measurements onto the graft itself,and thus may help reduce the risk of human error contributing to aninaccurate measurement and/or trim. Various embodiments andconfigurations of the disclosed device will now be described.

To help illustrate certain embodiments of the disclosed device, FIGS.1-5 are provided. Turning first to FIGS. 1-2, FIG. 1 in particular is anisometric view depicting an example embodiment of the disclosed device100, and FIG. 2 is a top-view depicting an example embodiment of thedisclosed device 100. As depicted, the device 100 includes a shaft 102,a proximal ring 104, and a distal ring 106 (the proximal ring and/or thedistal ring may at times herein be referred to as “element(s)”). Theshaft 102 may generally be an elongated shaft, with a generally circularcross-section. Although shafts having differently-shaped cross-sections(e.g., rectangular, ovaloid, etc.) are possible as well.

In some embodiments, the proximal ring 104 and the distal ring 106 maytake on a generally circular shape, however, in other embodiments, oneor both of the proximal ring 104 and the distal ring 106 may take on aovaloid or some other regular or irregular shape, or may be constructedof a generally pliable material that allows one or both of the proximalring 104 and the distal ring 106 to take on any shape desired by thesurgeon or other medical professional using the device 100. Further, theproximal ring 104 and/or the distal ring 106 may have any one of anumber of differently shaped cross sections. As depicted throughout thefigures, the rings are shown as having generally rectangularcross-sections. However, in other embodiments, the cross-sections of theproximal ring 104 and/or the distal ring 106 may be generally circular,ovaloid, or some other shape. And as a general matter, it should beunderstood that although the term “ring” is used to refer the proximaland distal elements (elements 104 and 106, respectively) of the device100, within which a graft may be placed in accordance with the exampleembodiments disclosed further herein, these elements are not limited tobeing ring or circular shaped, and in other embodiments, these elementsmay take on ovaloid or any other regular or irregular shape.

Depending on whether the device 100 is embodied as a disposable deviceor a reusable device, the shaft 102, proximal ring 104, and distal ring106 may be constructed of any suitable material or combination ofmaterials, including, for example, titanium (if the device 100 isembodied as a reusable device), but other metals and other materials arepossible, plastic (if the device 100 is embodied as a disposabledevice), or some combination of titanium (or other metal) and plastic(e.g., with the shaft 102 being titanium and perhaps reusable, and theproximal ring 104 and the distal ring 106 being plastic, and perhapsdisposable). Further, in some embodiments, the proximal ring and/or thedistal ring may be constructed of a generally pliable material, whichmay allow the rings to take on, or be formed during use, to the shape ofthe graft or cavity. Other materials and other combinations of materialsare possible as well.

The proximal ring 104 and the distal ring 106 may be configured andattached to the shaft 102 in any number of different ways. As onepossibility, the distal ring 106 may be fixed to a distal portion of theshaft 102 such that the bottom surface of the distal ring 106 isgenerally flush with the bottom surface of the shaft 102. The proximalring 104 may be attached to a proximal portion of the shaft 102 butmovable along the axis of shaft 102 either toward or away from thedistal ring 106. To accommodate this, the shaft and/or the proximal ring104 may include a locking mechanism, such as a clamp, which whenactuated causes the proximal ring 104 to be temporarily or permanentlyfixed into place along the shaft 102.

As another possibility, the proximal ring 104 may be fixed to the shaft102, whereas the distal ring 106 may be movable along the axis of theshaft 102 either toward or away from the proximal ring 104. Toaccomplish this, for instance, the distal ring 106 may be fixed to adistal portion of the shaft 102 but the distal portion of the shaft 102may be configured to collapse within a proximal portion of the shaft102, for instance, in a telescoping manner. In this configuration, thedevice 100 may also include a locking mechanism, such as a clasp, aninternal spring configuration, or a variably-tapered shaft, such thatwhen the distal ring 106 and the distal portion of the shaft 102 ismoved to a desired location, the locking mechanism can be actuated(e.g., by engaging the clasp, or by rotating the shaft 360° to engagethe spring or tapered portion of the shaft—although other lockingmechanisms are possible) to cause the distal ring 106 and the distalportion of the shaft 102 to be temporarily or permanently fixed intoplace.

Alternatively, a proximal portion of the shaft 102 may be configured tocollapse within a distal portion of the shaft 102. In thisconfiguration, the device 100 may also include a locking mechanism(similar to that described above), such that when the proximal ring 104and the proximal portion of the shaft 102 is moved to a desiredlocation, the locking mechanism can be actuated (e.g., by engaging theclasp, or rotating the shaft 360° to engage the spring or taperedportion of the shaft—although other locking mechanisms are possible) tocause the proximal ring 104 and the proximal portion of the shaft 102 tobe temporarily or permanently fixed into place.

As one additional example of a locking mechanism, the shaft 102 mayinclude therein a movable wall portion that is pressed via a force(e.g., a spring force) outward toward the inner walls of the shaft inorder to use friction to resist movement of the proximal portion of theshaft relative to the distal portion of the shaft. To control this, theshaft 102 may include at or near the proximal end thereof a handle witha button, such that when the button is depressed, the movable wallportion retracts so as to reduce or eliminate contact with the innerwall of the shaft 102. In this way, and so long as the button remainsdepressed, the proximal portion of the shaft 102 may freely slide up anddown into the distal portion of the shaft 102. Once the proximal ring104 and the distal ring 106 are at the desired positions, the button maybe released, which may cause the movable wall portion to come back intocontact with the inner walls of the shaft 102, which may thereby resistmovement of the proximal portion of the shaft relative to the distalportion of the shaft. Still other mechanisms for moving and locking therings into place along a shaft or other rigid body are possible as well.

The device 100 may include additional features or be configured inalternative ways. To help illustrate one example additional feature,FIG. 3 is a side-view depicting an example embodiment of device 100. Asdepicted in this embodiment, proximal ring 104 may include a lip 104 athat extends laterally from the proximal ring 104 and is constructed ofa material (e.g., rubber or light-weight plastic) that allows for lip104 a bend into a position that is approximately perpendicular to theaxis of the shaft 102. In practice, a lip on proximal ring 104, such aslip 104 a, may assist in placement of the device 100 in a recipientcavity. For instance, in an allograft cartilage transfer procedure,placement of the device 100 in a recipient cavity such that lip 104 acomes into contact with and rests upon the native cartilage surroundingthe recipient cavity may help to ensure that the device 100 is in anappropriate alignment.

In an alternate embodiment, one or more of the proximal ring 104 or thedistal ring 106 may be replaced with a plank. For instance, in oneexample, the proximal ring 104 may be replaced with a generally flatplank that may be movably attached to the shaft 102. In this way, whenthe device 100 is inserted into a recipient cavity such that the distalring contacts the bottom surface of the cavity, the plank may be movedsuch that the plank rests flush against the native surface of thecartilage. Other embodiments in which the proximal ring 104 or thedistal ring 106 take other forms may be possible as well.

Additionally, the proximal ring 104 and the distal ring 106 may beconfigured in various ways so as to allow the device 100 to receive thegraft. As one possibility, device 100 may be configured with a hingesystem such that the proximal ring 104 and the distal ring 106 can be“opened” to receive the graft. FIG. 4 is an isometric view depicting anexample embodiment of device 100 that may be configured with a hingesystem. As depicted in FIG. 4, the device 100 is in an “open” position,such that the proximal ring 104 and the distal ring 106 can receive agraft. Once the device 100 receives the graft, the device 100 may thenbe “closed” such that the proximal ring 104 and the distal ring 106close around the graft to resume a shape resembling that of device 100set forth in FIG. 1. In some embodiments, the device 100 has anadditional clasp or other locking mechanism on one or more of theproximal ring 104 and/or the distal ring 106 in order to secure therings around the graft.

As another possibility, device 100 may be configured to open at theshaft so as to receive the graft. For example. FIG. 5 depicts an exampleembodiment of device 100 that may be configured to open at the shaft102. As depicted, the device 100 may bend apart slightly (in thedirection of the depicted arrows) such that the shaft 102 splits intotwo separate portions. A graft can then be placed through this openingin the shaft 102. To accommodate this configuration, the proximal ring104 and the distal ring 106 may be constructed of a somewhat flexiblematerial in order for the rings to spread apart without permanentlydeforming. The device 100 may further include a clasping mechanism 502in order to close the device 100 and temporarily prevent the device 100from opening inadvertently. In other configurations, the proximal ring104 and the distal ring 106 may be configured with a hinge system asdescribed above in connection with FIG. 4 to further facilitate openingand closing the device 100 at the shaft.

It will be appreciated that the devices depicted in FIGS. 4-5 areexample embodiments of devices that are configured with a hinge systemand/or to spread apart at the shaft, and in other embodiments, hinges orother mechanism for facilitating “opening” of the rings may be placed inother locations and may be configured in other manners.

In some embodiments, the device 100 may include a wire mesh thatsurrounds the device 100. In particular, the wire mesh may be attachedto the device 100 at the proximal ring 104 and extend downward andattach to the distal ring 106 thus forming a generally cylindrical meshattached to the device 100 at the proximal and distal rings. In suchembodiments, as the proximal ring 104 or the distal ring 106 is movedalong the axis of the shaft 102, the wire mesh may accordingly expand orcontract. In some configurations, the device 100 may include the wiremesh but may not include one or more of the distal ring 104 and/or theproximal ring 106. In such configurations, the wire mesh may be attachedto the shaft 102 and configured to expand or contract in order to matchthe depth and contour of the recipient cavity. Other configurations arepossible as well.

In some embodiments, the proximal ring 104 and the distal ring 106 mayhave fixed diameters. In such cases, the device 100 can be referred toas having a “size,” where the “size” is the diameter of the rings. Inpractice, multiple devices 100 of different sizes may be available to asurgeon at the outset of a given procedure. Then, depending on the sizeof the cavity created by the reaming device during the procedure, thesurgeon would select a given device 100 that has a size that matches thesize of the cavity created by the reaming device.

In some embodiments, the device 100 may be configured with a proximalring 104 and a distal ring 106 that have adjustable diameters. This canbe accomplished in many different ways. As one possibility, the ringsmay be configured such that the material that comprises the ring foldsaround on itself and is fed through a clasp. Excess material can be fedthrough the clasp to increase the diameter, and excess material can bepulled through the clasp to decrease the diameter. Once the desireddiameter of the ring is achieved, by, for instance, pulling an amount ofmaterial through the clasp to decrease the diameter or by feeding anamount of material through the clasp to increase the diameter, the claspcan be locked and the remaining excess material can be trimmed off.Measurement indicators may be printed on the excess material at variouspositions such that if the clasp were to be locked at any given positionof the material, the ring diameter would match the diameter indicated bythe measurement indicator located at that particular position. Otherexample configurations in which the proximal ring 104 and a distal ring106 that have adjustable diameters are possible as well.

In some embodiments, the proximal ring 104 and/or the distal ring 106may be configured to have several degrees of rotational freedom. Inparticular, the proximal ring 104 and/or the distal ring 106 may beconfigured to attach to the shaft using a mechanism (e.g., aball-and-socket—although other mechanisms are possible) that enables therespective ring to attach to the shaft 102 yet pivot in place and thusrotate a few degrees in any of a number of directions. This may helpfacilitate a more accurate graft measurement in scenarios in which thedistal surface of the recipient cavity may be at an incline with respectto the axis of shaft 102 of the device 100. Accordingly, when device 100having, for instance, a rotationally-free distal ring 106 is insertedinto a recipient cavity having an inclined (or otherwise uneven orunlevel) distal surface, the distal ring 106 can pivot slightly andaccommodate this surface. When the distal ring 106 is locked into place,the locking mechanism may serve also to lock into place the rotationalposition of the distal ring 106 (e.g., by clamping down on aball-and-socket joint mechanism and thereby using friction to resistadditional rotation—although other locking mechanisms are possible). Assuch, the device 100 may help provide for a more accurate measurement,cut, and positioning of the graft into the recipient cavity,particularly when the distal surface of the recipient cavity is inclinedor otherwise uneven or unlevel. Other configurations providing for arotatable proximal ring 104 and/or a rotatable distal ring 106 arepossible as well.

To help describe an example of how the disclosed device may be usedduring an allograft cartilage transfer procedure, reference is now madeto FIG. 6, which depicts an example block diagram 600. For the purposesof illustration, block diagram 600 illustrates example steps that may beused in the course of conducting an allograft cartilage transferprocedure using the disclosed device. However, it should be understoodthat the block diagram 600 depicted in FIG. 6 is merely described insuch manner for the sake of clarity and explanation and that some stepsmay be carried out in various other manners as well, including thepossibility that example steps may be added, removed, rearranged intodifferent orders, grouped together, and/or not grouped together at all.

Turning first to block 602, a surgeon or other medical professional maycreate a cavity in the recipient cartilage. As mentioned above, thesurgeon or other medical professional may identify a defect in arecipient's cartilage and subsequently use a reamer or other device toremove the defect, which thus leaves a cavity in the cartilage andperhaps in a portion of any bone underlying the cartilage. To illustrateone example of this, FIG. 7 depicts an example portion of cartilage thatincludes a cavity 701, which may be created by a surgeon or othermedical professional using a reamer or other similar device. Other waysto create a cavity in recipient cartilage may be possible as well.

Next at block 604, the surgeon or other medical professional mayposition the disclosed device within the cavity such that the distalring of the device contacts or sits against the distal surface of thecavity and the proximal ring is flush with the native cartilage surface.In one example usage, the surgeon or other medical professional mayinsert device 100 in the cavity 701 until the distal ring 106 sitsagainst the bottom surface of the cavity. The surgeon or other medicalprofessional may then reposition the rings of the device until theproximal ring sits flush with the native surface of the recipientcartilage. To help illustrate one example of this, FIG. 8 depicts across section of the example portion of cartilage depicted in FIG. 7. Asdepicted, device 100 may be positioned within the cavity created in therecipient cartilage. The device may then be adjusted such that thedistal ring 106 sits against the bottom surface of the cavity and theproximal ring 104 sits flush with the native cartilage surface, asdepicted.

Depending on the embodiment of the device 100, adjusting of the devicesuch that the distal ring 106 sits against the bottom surface of thecavity and the proximal ring 104 sits flush with the native cartilagesurface can take place in a number of different ways. For instance, inembodiments in which the proximal ring 104 is movable along the axis ofthe shaft 102, the surgeon or other medical professional may positionthe proximal ring 104 along the axis of the shaft 102 so that theproximal ring 104 sits flush with the native surface of the cartilage702. In embodiments in which the distal ring 106 is movable along theaxis of the shaft 102, the surgeon or other medical professional mayposition the distal ring 106 along the axis of the shaft 102 so that theproximal ring 104 sits flush with the native surface of the cartilage702 and the distal ring 106 sits against the bottom surface of thecavity. As an alternative to positioning the device 100 such that theproximal ring 104 sits flush with the native surface 702 of thecartilage, the surgeon or other medical professional may position thedevice in any manner that would allow a donor graft to be placed withinthe device, trimmed, and then placed within the recipient cavity suchthat the top surface of the donor graft sits flush with the nativesurface of the recipient cartilage.

Once the surgeon or other medical professional has positioned thedisclosed device within the cavity such that the distal ring of thedevice contacts or sits against the distal surface of the cavity and theproximal ring is flush with the native cartilage surface, the surgeon orother medical professional may actuate a locking mechanism (e.g., whichmay be one or more of the types of locking mechanisms discussed above)in order to lock the positions of the proximal and distal rings. In oneexample of this, and depending on the embodiment of locking mechanismused, the surgeon or other medical professional may actuate the lockingmechanism while the device is positioned within the cavity. As ananother example, the surgeon or other medical professional may hold theposition of the proximal and distal rings steady, remove the device fromthe recipient cavity, and then actuate the locking mechanism once thedevice has been removed from the recipient cavity. Other ways to actuatethe locking mechanism on the device may be possible as well.

Turning back to block diagram 600 in FIG. 6, next at block 606, thesurgeon or other medical professional may remove the device from thecavity and, with the positions of the rings locked in place, place adonor graft within the device. As explained, the surgeon or othermedical professional may do this by sliding a donor graft through therings or opening the rings or otherwise spreading the rings apart suchthat a donor graft can be placed inside the rings, depending on theembodiment of the device. To help illustrate one example of a donorgraft placed within the device 100, FIG. 9 depicts one example of adevice 100 and a donor graft 902 positioned within the device 100. Asdepicted, the donor graft may be positioned within the device such thatthe top surface of the donor graft sits as close as possible to beingflush with the top (or proximal) surface of the proximal ring 104. Oncethe donor graft is positioned within the device 100 and the top surfaceof the graft sits flush with the proximal surface of the proximal ring104, the surgeon or other medical professional may determine whether thedonor graft is sufficiently long in order to continue the procedure withthat graft. For instance, if the graft does not visibly protrude fromthe bottom (or distal) surface of the distal ring 106, then the graftmay not be long enough to use in the recipient cavity. If the graftvisibility protrudes from the distal surface of the distal ring 106,then the graft length may be determined to be sufficient, and thesurgeon or other medical professional may proceed to trim the graft downto size at block 608. As depicted in FIG. 9, for instance, graft 902 hasa portion 904 that visibly protrudes from the distal surface of distalring 906.

Next at block 608, the surgeon or other medical professional may, whilethe graft is within the device, trim any excess portions of the donorgraft that extends beyond the distal ring of the device. The surgeon orother medical professional may use any appropriate cutting instrumentfor this step, such as a saw or any other cutting instrument.

Next at block 610, the surgeon or other medical professional may removethe donor graft from the device and insert the donor graft into therecipient cavity. From here, the surgeon or other medical professionalmay proceed with any remaining portions of the allograft cartilagetransfer procedure and may complete the procedure.

Example embodiments of the disclosed innovations have been describedabove. Those skilled in the art will understand, however, that changesand modifications may be made to the embodiments described withoutdeparting from the true scope and sprit of the present invention, whichwill be defined by claims.

For instance, those in the art will understand that the disclosed devicemay be implemented in other medical or surgical contexts. The disclosedapproaches for using the disclosed device could be used in othercontexts as well.

Further, to the extent that examples described herein involve operationsperformed or initiated by actors, such as “humans,” “operators,” “users”or other entities, this is for purposes of example and explanation only.Claims should not be construed as requiring action by such actors unlessexplicitly recited in claim language.

1. A cartilage measurement device for use during a graft procedure, thecartilage measurement device comprising: a shaft having (i) a proximalportion and (ii) a distal portion that is configured to collapse atleast partially within the proximal portion and expand out of theproximal portion; a distal ring coupled to the distal portion of theshaft; a proximal ring coupled to the proximal portion of the shaft; anda locking mechanism, that, when actuated, is configured to cause thedistal portion of the shaft to be temporarily fixed in place within theproximal portion of the shaft, wherein the cartilage measurement deviceis configured to be positioned within a cavity formed in a nativecartilage of a patient, and wherein the proximal and distal rings arecoaxial and are configured to receive a graft therethrough.
 2. Thecartilage measurement device of claim 1, wherein the cartilagemeasurement device is further configured such that when the cartilagemeasurement device is positioned within the cavity, (i) the distal ringcontacts a bottom surface of the cavity and (ii) a top surface of theproximal ring is aligned with a top surface of the native cartilage. 3.The cartilage measurement device of claim 1, wherein the shaft is formedfrom a reusable material that comprises a metal material.
 4. Thecartilage measurement device of claim 1, wherein the shaft is formedfrom a disposable material that comprises a plastic material.
 5. Thecartilage measurement device of claim 1, wherein one or both of thedistal ring or the proximal ring are formed from a pliable material thatis configured to be adapted to a respective form of one or both of thecavity or the graft.
 6. The cartilage measurement device of claim 1,wherein each of the proximal ring the distal ring comprises an outercartilage-contacting surface and an inner graft-contacting surface. 7.The cartilage measurement device of claim 1, further comprising a hingesystem whereby at least one of the proximal ring and the distal ring canbe positioned in an open position so as to receive the graft.
 8. Thecartilage measurement device of claim 1, wherein the shaft comprises afirst shaft portion and a second shaft portion, and wherein thecartilage measurement device is configured to receive the graft betweenthe first shaft portion and the second shaft portion.
 9. The cartilagemeasurement device of claim 1, wherein at least one of the proximal ringand the distal ring is configured to have an adjustable diameter. 10.The cartilage measurement device of claim 1, wherein at least one of theproximal ring and the distal ring is coupled to the shaft such that theat least one of the proximal ring and distal ring has rotational freedomrelative to the shaft and is configured to be pivoted in place whilecoupled to the shaft.
 11. The cartilage measurement device of claim 10,wherein the locking mechanism, when actuated, is further configured tocause the proximal ring to be temporarily fixed in place such that theproximal ring no longer has rotational freedom and is no longerconfigured to be pivoted.
 12. The cartilage measurement device of claim1, further comprising a wire mesh that is coupled at a first end to thedistal ring and at a second end to the proximal ring, wherein the wiremesh is configured to contract as the proximal portion of the shaftcollapses within the distal portion and expand as the proximal portionexpands out of the distal portion.
 13. A method comprising: providing acartilage measurement device for use during a graft procedure, thecartilage measurement device comprising: a shaft having (i) a proximalportion and (ii) a distal portion that is configured to collapse atleast partially within the proximal portion and expand out of theproximal portion; a distal ring coupled to the distal portion of theshaft; a proximal ring coupled to the proximal portion of the shaft; anda locking mechanism, that, when actuated, is configured to cause thedistal portion of the shaft to be temporarily fixed in place within theproximal portion of the shaft, positioning the cartilage measurementdevice within a cavity formed in a native cartilage of a patient, andplacing a graft through the proximal and distal rings, wherein theproximal and distal rings are coaxial.
 14. The method of claim 13,wherein positioning the cartilage measurement device within the cavitycomprises: positioning the cartilage measurement device within thecavity such that (i) the distal ring contacts a bottom surface of thecavity and (ii) a top surface of the proximal ring is aligned with a topsurface of the native cartilage.
 15. The method of claim 13, wherein theshaft is formed from a reusable material that comprises a metalmaterial.
 16. The method of claim 13, wherein the shaft is formed from adisposable material that comprises a plastic material.
 17. The method ofclaim 13, wherein one or both of the distal ring or the proximal ringare formed from a pliable material that is configured to be adapted to arespective form of one or both of the cavity or the graft.
 18. Themethod of claim 13, wherein each of the proximal ring the distal ringcomprises an outer cartilage-contacting surface and an innergraft-contacting surface.
 19. The method of claim 13, wherein thecartilage measurement device further comprises a hinge system, themethod further comprising: positioning at least one of the proximal ringor the distal ring in an open position for receiving the graft.
 20. Themethod of claim 13, wherein the shaft comprises a first shaft portionand a second shaft portion, the method further comprising: placing thecartilage measurement device between the first shaft portion and thesecond shaft portion.